It has an accounting section where you can log expenses and earnings

The IRS does not consider your stock earnings to be ordinary income, they are capital gains.

Darrell,Usually when properties sit on the market it's because the property is either overpriced or it's not in a desirable area, were buyers want to buy.

This creates two loan payments ($100,000 of equity and $300,000 on the new mortgage).Key NumbersHome Equity Loan Interest Rate: 6%Mortgage Interest Rate: 7%Rental Income: $3,000 per monthExpenses (management, taxes, insurance, maintenance): $800 per monthIncome and ExpensesMonthly Rental Income: $3,000Monthly Expenses: $800Monthly Mortgage Payment: $2,000ExplanationThe investor earns $3,000 in rent each month.They pay $2,000 on the investment property mortgage and $800 on other expenses.This leaves $200 profit each month or $2,400 per year.However, you have to pay $6,000 interest on the equity borrowed.This leaves you with an annual loss of $3,600.While the rental property generates positive monthly income, the interest cost of borrowing the initial $100,000 results in an overall annual loss.

Depreciation will continue to provide tax savings for years to come, of course.Appreciation isn't cash earnings, of course, until the property is sold, but it does factor into the overall wealth building opportunity in real estate investing.

Hopefully you have that HELOC money earning interest for you in the mean time.

The difficulty in finding tenants is determined by the desirability of the location, the property itself, and the amount of rent you're charging relative to other rentals in the area.

Will using a high yield savings account and your current savings rate get you the capital you need in the timeframe you desire?

You will need an Accountant to help figure out the EBITDA or Seller's Discretionary Earnings(SDE) for you and compare to the Tax Return to make sure it all looks good and makes sense.

The hourly wage Id earn on that after paying expenses and taxes would put me at half the median income for my metro area.